Retailers might also want to take into
consideration weather and other local factors when deciding what to stock.

“In many cases, it’s more about the season and whether the store is in an urban
area or a more rural environment,” said
Susan Weiss, CEO and founder of Ark
Naturals Products for Pets in Naples, Fla.
“Urban areas tend to have customers with
smaller pups; suburban and rural areas favor larger dogs; and with that, the lifestyle
of the pet changes.

“We designed the simple solutions
sets to make it especially easy for retailers to merchandise products that cater
to issues their pet customers have,” she
added.

As many consumers seek products that
are certified, Tillman suggested sticking to
brands that have the NASC logo.

“These brands are held to much higherstandards and can only carry the NASClogo if they produce legitimate supple-ments that work,” he said.

For the same reasons, he recommended stocking market-leading brands, which
bring in customers.

MERCHANDISING FOR IMPACT

However or wherever pet retailers display
their assortment of supplements, consumers should be able to immediately identify
a product’s purpose.

Weiss said that most retailers display
supplements by use, but that there are
pros and cons to this method.

“The plus is that the consumer gets tosee all the products that retailer carriesfor that issue,” she said. “The negative tothat is that human brains don’t do wellwhen a bunch of products are next toeach other; when the brain is confused,the human does not make a decision, sooften no sale occurs.”The solution, she said, is to make surethat salespeople are proactive in engagingwith customers.

Meanwhile, some suggest that retailers
might want to avoid having too copious a
selection of products in the category.

“When there are too many options
for one issue, people get confused and
overwhelmed,” Brewer said, adding
that Crunchie’s keeps educational literature within easy reach.

As they have no hard and fast rule
about how to merchandise their stock, the
staff at TailsSpin tries different methods
when presenting supplements.

“We do have our supplements to-gether in a designated section withinour store,” Bernhard said. “But we of-ten take the opportunity to move thingsaround, trying different locations foreffective selling locations. We oftentry placing supplements alongside ourfood lines to offer ways to complementbetter health opportunities. Sometimesthe move will give a new perspective toour customers, as we are all creaturesof habit.”Tillman added that because supple-ments are typically add-on sales with highmargins, often, the most effective way tosell them is to place them where shopperscan’t miss them.

“Supplements should have their own
section near the register or points of purchase so store associates can easily recommend a supplement to any pet parent
based on their needs,” he said.

However, cross-merchandising supplements with food can also be helpful
if a particular supplement is something
that can be added to food, but be careful
about displaying them near treats, said
Bethany Kassebaum, TropiClean’s merchandising specialist.

“Treats include added ingredients with
claims of improving skin and coat or hip
and joint, but [these do not] compare to
the benefits of supplements,” she said. “By
displaying them separately, this will help
the customer see the difference between
each category.”

GR
IZZ
LY
P
ET
PROD
U
CTS

However or wherever pet retailers display their assortment of supplements, consumersshould be able to immediately identify a product’s purpose. Some suggest thatretailers might want to avoid having too copious a selection of products in the category.

ARK

NATURALSPETAGOGYPETAGOGYPETAGOGYCRUNCHIE’SNATURALPETFOODS

Industry participants
report that there are pros
and cons of displaying
supplements by use. Cons
include confusing pet
owners shopping in the
store. However, it does
give retailers the
opportunity to engage
with shoppers and explain
which products might offer
the best solution to their
pet’s ailments.